Article sorting apparatus

Abstract

The present invention is directed to a carton sorting device which comprises a main conveyor and at least one subsidiary conveyor angled away from the main conveyor at a branching unit. The main conveyor is adapted to apply a lateral force to articles having a lateral dimension below a preselected value so as to urge such articles onto the subsidiary conveyor. Articles having a lateral dimension greater than said preselected value are not affected. In this way, a mixture of the small and large articles are divided into two streams, the main conveyor carrying a stream of larger articles and the subsidiary conveyor only a stream of smaller articles. The invention also makes provision for sorting streams of articles having differences in their longitudinal dimension.

What is claimed is: 
     
       1. A device for sorting substantially rectangular articles of various lateral dimensions contained in a single conveyor stream into two separate conveyor streams, one stream containing articles having a lateral dimension above a pre-determined value and a second stream having a lateral demension below the pre-determined value, said device comprising conveyor means for supplying the single stream of said articles in a longitudinally aligned condition to a conveyor having an article supporting surface comprising members, which in operation, constantly apply a lateral force to said articles to urge same toward an article restraining means and a powered chain loop at a side of the conveyor remote from the article restraining means from which it is spaced more than said pre-determined value but less than the width of the larger articles, means on said loop being provided to contact and impart to an article travelling on said conveyor when said article has a lateral dimension greater than said pre-selected size a force only in the longitudinal direction of travel of said article, said conveyor having an article discharge end terminating at a branching unit having a mainstream conveyor passage colinear with said conveyor and a subsidiary conveyor passage angled away from the conveyor side containing said restraining means and into which subsidiary conveyor articles having a lateral dimension below said pre-selected value are projected by said article supporting surface whilst articles having a lateral dimension above said pre-selected value are urged by said chain loop past said subsidiary conveyor to continue along said main conveyor. 
     
     
       2. A device according to claim 1 wherein the article supporting surface is formed of a bed of driven cylindrical roller members each set at an angle to the longitudinal direction of travel of the articles. 
     
     
       3. A device according to claim 2 wherein the roller members in the region of the subsidiary passage are set at a greater angle to the direction of travel of the articles than the remaining roller members so as to provide a relatively greater lateral force to travelling articles at least adjacent an entrance to the subsidiary conveyor passage. 
     
     
       4. A device for sorting substantially rectangular articles of various lateral dimensions contained in a single conveyor stream into two separate conveyor streams, one stream containing large articles having a lateral dimension above a pre-determined value and a second stream containing small articles having a lateral dimension below said pre-determined value, said device comprising conveyor means for supplying said single stream of articles in a longitudinally aligned condition to a conveyor having an article supporting surface formed of a bed of driven cylindrical roller members, each set at an angle to the longitudinal direction of travel of the articles so as to have adjacent leading and trailing roller edges and which members, in operation, constantly impart a lateral force to said articles to urge same toward article restraining means provided at a side of the conveyor defined by said roller trailing edges and a powered chain loop located at a side of the conveyor defined by said roller leading edges which loop is spaced from said article restraining means by more than the said pre-selected value but less than the width of the large articles, said chain loop provided with carrying means to contact and selectively impart to large articles when travelling on said conveyor, a force only in the longitudinal direction of travel of said articles, said conveyor having an article discharge end terminating at branching unit having a mainstream conveyor passage colinear with said conveyor and a subsidiary conveyor passage angled away from the conveyor side containing said restraining means and into which subsidiary conveyor small articles are projected by said article supporting surface whilst large articles are urged by said chain loop past said subsidiary conveyor to continue along said main conveyor. 
     
     
       5. A device according to claim 4, wherein the roller members in the region of the subsidiary conveyor passage are set at a greater angle to the direction of travel of the articles than the remaining roller members so as to provide a relatively greater lateral force to travelling articles at least adjacent an entrance to the subsidiary conveyor passage. 
     
     
       6. A device for sorting substantially rectangular articles of various lateral dimensions contained in a single conveyor stream, of which larger articles have a lateral dimension above a pre-determined value and small articles have a lateral dimension below said pre-determined value , said device comprising conveyor means for supplying said articles in a longitudinally aligned condition to a conveyor having an article supporting surface formed of a pair of parallel coplanar beds of driven cylindrical roller members, the roller members in each bed being set at an angle to the longitudinal direction of travel of the articles to effect a herringbone configuration pointing in the longitudinal direction of travel of the articles so as to have adjacent leading and trailing roller edges and which members, in operation, constantly impart a lateral force to said articles to urge same toward article restraining means provided at a side of each roller bed defined by said roller trailing edges, and a powered chain loop located between and along the length of the roller beds, which loop is from said article restraining means by more than the pre-determined value but less than the lateral dimension of said large articles and is provided with carrying means to contact and selectively impart to said large articles when travelling on said conveyor bed, a force only in the longitudinal direction of travel of said articles, said conveyor having an article discharge end terminating at a branching unit having a mainstream conveyor passage colinear with said conveyor and two subsidiary conveyor passages, one angled away from each conveyor side and into which subsidiary conveyors said small particles are projected by said article supporting surface whilst said large articles are urged by said chain loop past said subsidiary conveyors to continue along said main conveyor. 
     
     
       7. A device according to claim 6, wherein the roller members in the region of the subsidiary conveyor passage are set at a greater angle to the direction of travel of the articles than the remaining roller members so as to provide a relatively greater lateral force to travelling articles at least adjacent an entrance to the subsidiary conveyor passage.